Spatiotemporal variability in hydrochemistry of shallow groundwater in a small pre‐alpine catchment: The importance of landscape elements

Topography and landscape characteristics affect the storage and release of water and, thus, groundwater dynamics and chemistry. Quantification of catchment scale variability in groundwater chemistry and groundwater dynamics may therefore help to delineate different groundwater types and improve our understanding of which parts of the catchment contribute to streamflow. We sampled shallow groundwater from 34 to 47 wells and streamflow at seven locations in a 20‐ha steep mountainous catchment in the Swiss pre‐Alps, during nine baseflow snapshot campaigns. The spatial variability in electrical conductivity, stable water isotopic composition, and major and trace ion concentrations was large and for almost all parameters larger than the temporal variability. Concentrations of copper, zinc, and lead were highest at sites that were relatively dry, whereas concentrations of manganese and iron were highest at sites that had persistent shallow groundwater levels. The major cation and anion concentrations were only weakly correlated to individual topographic or hydrodynamic characteristics. However, we could distinguish four shallow groundwater types based on differences from the catchment average concentrations: riparian zone‐like groundwater, hillslopes and areas with small upslope contributing areas, deeper groundwater, and sites characterized by high magnesium and sulfate concentrations that likely reflect different bedrock material. Baseflow was not an equal mixture of the different groundwater types. For the majority of the campaigns, baseflow chemistry most strongly resembled riparian‐like groundwater for all but one subcatchment. However, the similarity to the hillslope‐type groundwater was larger shortly after snowmelt, reflecting differences in hydrologic connectivity. We expect that similar groundwater types can be found in other catchments with steep hillslopes and wet areas with shallow groundwater levels and recommend sampling of groundwater from all landscape elements to understand groundwater chemistry and groundwater contributions to streamflow.     

A novel approach for estimating karst groundwater recharge in mountainous regions and its application in Switzerland

A pragmatic and simple approach for estimating the groundwater recharge of karst aquifers in mountainous regions by extrapolation of the hydrological regimes of gauged and well‐documented systems is presented. Specific discharge rates are derived using annual precipitation and spring measurements by taking into account catchment size and elevation, which are assumed to be the dominant factors. Reference sites with high data reliability are used for calibration and regional extrapolation. This is performed with normalized values employing spatial precipitation deviations and correlation with the elevation of the catchment areas. A tiered step procedure provides minimum and maximum normalized gradients for the relationship between recharge quantity and elevation for karst regions. The normalized recharge can therefore be obtained and extrapolated for any location using the spatial precipitation variability to provide an estimate of annual groundwater recharge. The approach was applied to Switzerland (approximately 7500 km² of karst terrain situated between 200 and over 4000 m a.s.l.) using annual precipitation data from meteorological stations for the years 2000 to 2011. Results show that the average recharge rates of different Swiss karst domains range from 20 to 46 L/km²s, which corresponds to an infiltration ratio between 0.6 and 0.9 of total precipitation. Despite uncertainties inherent in the approach, these results provide a benchmark for renewable karst groundwater resources in Switzerland of about 8.4 km³/year. The approach can be applied to any other mountainous karst region, that is, where a clear relationship between elevation, precipitation and recharge can be assumed. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Complex hydraulic interactions between compartmentalized carbonate aquifers and heterogeneous siliciclastic successions: a case study in southern Italy

The sedimentary sequences containing lithologic units with low permeability represent hydrogeologic systems, which, as of now, have been little studied despite their diffusion worldwide. A hydrogeologic study, aimed to assess the main factors controlling the groundwater flow dynamics in such systems and their hydraulic interactions with nearby carbonate aquifers, has been carried out in Longano (Isernia, Southern Italy). The analysis of the hydraulic heads, combined with the regimes of the springs and the electric conductivity of the groundwater, mainly reflect vertical and lateral heterogeneities of the media in terms of hydraulic properties. In particular, the flow system is controlled by lateral heterogeneities, which characterize a surficial horizon made up of clayey colluviums and talus deposits, separated from the deeper saturated, fissured bedrock. One‐to‐ten relationships in hydraulic heads, monitored in piezometers crossing the fissured media, further uphold the crucial role played by the lateral contrasts of permeability in controlling the flow dynamics. On the whole, significant interactions with the nearby carbonate hydrostructure take place. Nevertheless, the heterogeneities of the siliciclastic succession and surficial horizon, coupled with the compartmentalization of the carbonate system, lead to a complex hydrogeological scenario. In a wider perspective, this study gives information of utmost importance in order to improve the implementation of mathematical models and configuration of tapping works within these heterogeneous and complex settings. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Groundwater mixing between different aquifer types in a complex structural setting discerned by elemental and stable isotope geochemistry

Karst aquifers are well known for their intricate stratigraphy and geologic structures, which make groundwater characterization challenging because flowpaths and recharge sources are complex and difficult to evaluate. Geochemical data, collected from ten closely spaced production wells constructed in two karst aquifers (Bangor Limestone (Mb) and Tuscumbia Limestone/Fort Payne Chert (Mftp)) in Trussville, north‐central Alabama, illustrate two distinctive groundwater end‐members: (1) higher major ion, dissolved inorganic carbon, conductivity, alkalinity concentrations, heavier δ¹³C ratios (max: −10.2 ± 0.2‰ Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite (PDB)) and lower residence times (mean: 19.5 ± 2 years, n = 2) of groundwater in the Mb aquifer and (2) lower constituent concentrations, lighter δ¹³C ratios (min: −13.4 ± 0.2‰ PDB) and longer residence times of groundwater (mean: 23.6 ± 2 years, n = 4) in the Mftp aquifer. Summer and fall data and the binary mixing model show aquifer inter‐flow mixing along solution fractures and confirms the distinctive groundwater geochemistry of the two aquifers. Lowering of static water levels over the summer (drawdown from 2 to 5.2 m) leads to more reducing groundwater conditions (lower Eh values) and slightly enriched δ¹⁸O and δD ratios during the fall [δ¹⁸O: −4.8 ± 0.1 to −5.4 ± 0.1‰ Vienna Standard Mean Oceanic Water (VSMOW), n = 9; δD: −25.4 ± 1 to −27.4 ± 1‰ VSMOW, n = 9] when compared with summer season samples (δ¹⁸O: −5.1 ± 0.1 to −5.7 ± 0.1‰ VSMOW, n = 11; δD: −25.0 ± 1 to −30.6 ± 1‰ VSMOW, n = 11). GIS analyses confirm the localized origin of recharge to the investigated aquifers. The combination of GIS, field parameters and geochemistry analyses can be successfully used to identify recharge sources, evaluate groundwater flow and transport pathways and to improve understanding of how groundwater withdrawals impact the sustainability and susceptibility to contamination of karst aquifers. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Significance of shallow core transects for reef models and sea‐level curves,Heron Reef,Great Barrier Reef

A sequence of shallow reef cores from Heron Reef, Great Barrier Reef, provides new insights into Holocene reef growth models. Isochron analysis of a leeward core transect suggests that the north‐western end of Heron Reef reached current sea‐level by ca 6·5 kyr bp and then prograded leeward at a rate of ca 19·6 m/kyr between 5·1 kyr and 4·1 kyr bp (pre‐1950) to the present reef margin. A single short core on the opposing margin of the reef is consistent with greater and more recent progradation there. Further to the east, one windward core reached modern sea‐level by ca 6·3 kyr bp , suggesting near ‘keep‐up’ behaviour at that location, but the opposing leeward margin behind the lagoon reached sea‐level much more recently. Hence, Heron Reef exhibited significantly different reef growth behaviour on different parts of the same margin. Mean reef accretion rates calculated from within 20 m of one another in the leeward core transect varied between ca 2·9 m and 4·7 m/kyr depending on relative position in the prograding wedge. These cores serve as a warning regarding the use of isolated cores to inform reef growth rates because apparent aggradation at any given location on a reef varies depending on its location relative to a prograding margin. Only transects of closely spaced cores can document reef behaviour adequately so as to inform reef growth models and sea‐level curves. The cores also emphasize potential problems in U‐series dates for corals within a shallow (ca 1·5 m) zone beneath the reef flat. Apparent age inversions restricted to that active diagenetic zone may reflect remobilization and concentration of Th in irregularly distributed microbialites or biofilms that were missed during sample vetting. Importantly, the Th‐containing contaminant causes ages to appear too old, rather than too young, as would be expected from younger cement.     

Progradational and backstepping shoreface deposits in the Ladinian to Early Norian Snadd Formation of the Barents Sea

Shoreface sandstone deposits within the Early Carnian part of the Snadd Formation of the Norwegian Barents Sea can be traced for hundreds of kilometres in the depositional strike direction and for tens of kilometres in the depositional‐dip direction. This study uses three‐dimensional seismic attribute mapping and two‐dimensional regional seismic profiles to visualize the seismic facies of these shoreface deposits and to map their internal stratigraphic architecture at a regional scale. The shoreface deposits are generally elongate but show variable width from north‐east to south‐west, which corresponds to a sediment source in the northern part of the basin and a southward decrease in longshore sediment transport. The Snadd Formation presents an example of how large‐scale progradational shoreface deposits develop. The linear nature of its shoreface deposits contrasts with more irregular, cuspate wave‐dominated deltaic shorelines that contain river outlets, and instead implies longshore drift as the main sediment source. In map view, discrete sets of linear features bounded by truncation surfaces scale directly to beach ridge sets in modern counterparts. The shoreface deposits studied here are characteristic in terms of scale and basin‐wide continuity, and offer insight into the contrast between shallow marine deposition under stable Triassic Greenhouse and fluctuating Holocene Icehouse climates. Findings presented herein are also important for hydrocarbon exploration in the Barents Sea, because they describe a hitherto poorly understood reservoir play in the Triassic interval, wherein the most prominent reservoir plays have so far been considered to be found in channelized deposits in net‐progradational delta‐plain strata that form the topsets to shelf‐edge clinoforms. The documented presence of widespread wave‐dominated shoreface deposits also has implications for how the relative importance of different sedimentary processes is considered within the basin during this period.     

莱州湾沿岸寿光、莱州和龙口地下水的稳定同位素与地球化学

依据地下水咸化机理:蒸发、溶解和混合,海水入侵是地下淡水与较之更咸的海水的混合,海水和淡水的混合包括水分子的混合和溶解盐分的混合。只有溶剂水分子和溶质溶解盐分都发生了相同比例的混合,才能确定二种水体发生了混合。地下淡水变咸并不能都归因于海水入侵,也有可能源于蒸发或溶解。鉴定是否存在海水入侵可运用惰性示踪剂和反应示踪剂来共同识别。惰性示踪剂包括δD、δ~(18)O、Cl~-和Br~-,反应示踪剂包括主要化学成分和微量元素。本研究对莱州湾沿岸寿光、莱州和龙口的地下水进行了化学成分形成过程的对比研究。莱州采集样品6件,龙口10件,寿光9件。莱州和龙口的碎屑沉积物以硅酸盐矿物为主,而寿光的沉积物来源于南部鲁中南山地的碳酸盐岩。根据莱州采样点地理条件和样品的稳定同位素δD-δ~(18)O分布域确定了当地降雨入渗的多年平均值,进而明确龙口样品也源于就地降雨入渗补给,根据高程效应和当地水文情况确定寿光样品补给来自南部山区的降水,经河道排入洼地后入渗地下。Cl~--δ~(18)O关系表明盐分都来源于淡水溶解的蒸发盐,而非与海水混合。Br~-/Cl~-比值证实了蒸发盐溶解,还存在人为污染物和海侵沉积物中有机质分解的影响。从三线图可看出龙口样品经历了离子交换反应。主要成分和微量元素(HCO_3~-,H_2SiO_3,F~-,Li~+,Sr~(2+)和Ba~(2+))的含量与样品所处含水层的矿物组成有关,反映出水岩作用。所有样品都没有淡水和海水混合的现象。惰性示踪剂分析提供了区域地下水补给的框架,明确了大气水源因溶解蒸发盐而咸化,排除了淡水和海水混合的可能性。用反应示踪剂中主要化学成分和微量元素来分析水中化学成分的形成过程,在和海洋盐分输入对比基础上,二者偏差值主要源自水-岩相互作用结果,包括溶解、沉淀、离子交换等,以及局部样品的污染物输入。所以沿海地带研究地下水咸化,先要解决溶剂的混合问题,在此基础上辅以水文地球化学分析,利用水化学的多种示踪剂,主要解决溶质混合以及盐分来源问题。     

以钻代槽勘查方法研究与应用

为解决槽、井探等传统地表揭露手段自身局限性问题及减少对环境的破坏,提出以钻代槽勘查方法研究的技术路线,总结归纳出浅钻技术方法与钻孔布孔方案,同时初步探讨了基于钻孔数据的三维地质建模方法。最后将以钻代槽方法成果在西藏等地进行了推广应用,验证了可行性和有效性。     

基于Neuman井流理论确定玄武岩潜水含水层渗透系数的应用——以吉林靖宇煤矿为例

全面分析研究区玄武岩潜水含水层水文地质条件的基础上,对稳定流和非稳定理论确定潜水含水层渗透系数的优缺点进行了对比,认为非稳定井流公式确定玄武岩潜水含水层渗透系数是合理的。Aquifer Test软件基于Neuman井流理论配线法求参原理,运用计算机完成了自动求参,避免了人工配线的不足。该文根据吉林靖宇煤矿研究区玄武岩潜水含水层非稳定流抽水试验,分别用Aquifer Test软件和稳定井流公式进行了求参,并对比分析得出:玄武岩含水层弹性释水作用影响时间较长,利用Neuman潜水井流公式求参可靠,且更逼近现实;用Aquifer Test软件实现了自动求参,具有操作简单规范、可比性好的优点。     

圆回线和矩形回线源瞬变电磁响应差异性计算

在回线源瞬变电磁发展的早期,往往使用圆回线产生的场来近似模拟多边形回线的场。为了对这种近似的影响进行分析,本文以矩形回线为例,对圆回线近似模拟多边形回线的误差进行计算。首先,根据给出的圆回线和矩形回线内外任一点的感生电动势新的计算方法,对两种回线装置内的感生电动势分布进行对比。研究结果表明:在扩散场早期,圆回线和矩形回线场的等值线分布形态存在较大的差别,而在扩散场中晚期,两种回线感生电动势相对误差较小。两种回线感生电动势相对误差的变化特征可以用感应电流烟圈扩散的理论进行解释。通过理论模型的分析可知,圆回线近似矩形回线会对浅层电性结构分析带来较大影响。